Mystics and Psychics The Birth of Christianity The Birth of Islam Founders of Faith

Gr 7 Up—This quartet of books varies in quality and usefulness. Founders is a simplified account of the lives (or stories) of several figures, from Krishna, who has no historical counterpart, to Zoroaster. The text wavers somewhere between recounting religious stories and providing historical information; unfortunately, it succeeds at neither. After an abysmal introduction in which the author refers to a Roman tradition in 1200 BCE (well before Rome was founded) and discusses Native American cultures in the past tense, Mystics delves into the lives of several ancient and modern supernaturally gifted teachers, including Hildegarde von Bingen, Nostradamus, Edgar Cayce, and Jeane Dixon. Christianity and Islam are by far the strongest of these titles, covering the beginnings of these religions in an impartial way. The contexts in which the religions developed are explained, offering insight into how the two faiths came to be and introducing major concepts from the religions.